[09/21/10 - 12:19 PM]NBC Wins the Final Week of the 2009-10 Broadcast YearNBC spins the numbers for the week of September 13-19.

[via press release from NBC]

NBC WINS THE FINAL WEEK OF THE 2009-10 BROADCAST YEAR, RANKING #1 IN ADULTS 18-49 AND ALL OTHER KEY MEASURES FOR THE WEEK OF SEPT. 13-19

NBC IS #1 FOR THE WEEK IN ADULTS, MEN AND WOMEN 18-34, 18-49, 25-54 AND TOTAL VIEWERS

NBC SPORTS' GIANTS-COLTS GAME PROPELS THE NETWORK TO A DOMINANT SUNDAY WIN IN EVERY KEY MEASURE - ADULTS, MEN AND WOMEN 18-49, 18-34 AND 25-54, PLUS TOTAL VIEWERS

'NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL' IS THE #1 PROGRAM OF THE WEEK IN ADULTS 18-49, 18-34, 25-54 AND ALL KEY MALE AND FEMALE DEMOS

NBC HAS FOUR OF THE TOP 10 PROGRAMS OF THE WEEK IN ADULTS 18-49 AND THE TOP THREE TELECASTS OF THE WEEK IN TOTAL VIEWERS

ON WEDNESDAY, THE 'AMERICA'S GOT TALENT' FINALE SCORES THE HIGHEST 18-49 RATING FOR A 'TALENT' FINALE IN THREE YEARS AND ATTRACTS THE SHOW'S BIGGEST AUDIENCE EVER

WEDNESDAY'S 'OUTLAW' PREVIEW WINS ITS SLOT IN TOTAL VIEWERS WITH NBC'S BIGGEST OVERALL AUDIENCE IN THE HOUR IN A YEAR, EXCLUDING OLYMPICS

TUESDAY'S 'AMERICA'S GOT TALENT' MATCHES THE SHOW'S HIGHEST 18-49 RATING IN THREE YEARS AND DELIVERS ITS THIRD BIGGEST OVERALL VIEWERSHIP TO DATE

ALSO ON TUESDAY, THE SECOND-SEASON DEBUT OF 'PARENTHOOD' DOMINATES ITS TIME PERIOD, BEATING THE FIRST-RUN COMPETITION ON ABC AND CBS COMBINED IN ALL KEY RATINGS CATEGORIES

TUESDAY'S 'MINUTE TO WIN IT' HITS A NEW SUMMER HIGH IN TOTAL VIEWERS

NBC WINS TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY NIGHTS IN ADULTS 18-49, 25-54, TOTAL VIEWERS AND OTHER KEY MEASURES

FRIDAY'S 'DATELINE NBC' REPORTS THE SHOW'S HIGHEST FRIDAY 18-49 RATING IN 14 WEEKS AND ITS BIGGEST FRIDAY VIEWERSHIP IN 20 WEEKS, RANKING #1 IN ITS SLOT IN ADULTS 18-49, 25-54 AND TOTAL VIEWERS

NBC FINISHES THE 2009-10 BROADCAST YEAR WITHIN 0.2 OF A RATING POINT OF #2 IN ADULTS 18-49

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. - September 21, 2010 - With a top-scoring NFL telecast, potent numbers from the final episodes of "America's Got Talent" and strong ratings from the season debut of "Parenthood" and series preview of "Outlaw," NBC dominated the primetime ratings week of September 13-19, winning the week in all key adult demos as well as in total viewers. According to in-home viewing figures from Nielsen Media Research, NBC finished the week with an average 2.8 rating, 8 share in adults 18-49 and 8.9 million viewers overall.

For the week, NBC ranked #1 among the major networks in all key measures - adults, men and women 18-34, 18-49, 25-54 - as well as in total viewers.

For the week, NBC claimed three of the top five, four of the top 10 and five of the top 20 shows of the week in primetime's key demographic of adults 18-49, with "NBC Sunday Night Football" ranking #1, the Tuesday and Wednesday telecasts of "America's Got Talent" ranking #3 (tied), the second-season premiere of "Parenthood" ranking #7 and Wednesday's preview of the new series "Outlaw" ranking #17 (excludes all football pre-game and post-game telecasts).

In total viewers, NBC aired the top three telecasts of the week and four of the top 10 - "Sunday Night Football," with 23. 1 million viewers was #1, Wednesday's "America's Got Talent" finale, with 18.5 million viewers ranked #2, Tuesday's edition of "America's Got Talent," with 14.6 million viewers was #3 and the preview of "Outlaw," with 10.7 million viewers ranked #6 (excludes all football pre-game and post-game telecasts).

The week of September 13-19 concludes the full 52-week 2009-10 television season. For the full season, NBC ranked #3 in primetime's key demographic of adults 18-49 with a 2.4 rating, 7 share, tied with ABC and within 0.2 of a point of #2 CBS (2.6/8). In adult 18-49 viewers, NBC, with a "most current" 52-week average of 3.183 million 18-49 viewers, narrowly tops ABC, (3.177 million 18-49 viewers). Fox, with a 3.1/9 in 18-49, ranked #1 for the period of September 21, 2009 through September 19, 2010.

For the full 52-week season, NBC also ranked #3 among the broadcast networks in adults 25-54, tied with ABC at a 2.9/7 rating/share, and ranked #2 in adults 18-34, tied with ABC at a 2.0/6 rating/share, ahead of CBS (1.8/6).

NBC highlights for the week of September 13-19

* On Sunday, NBC Sports' "Sunday Night Football" telecast of the New York Giants at the Indianapolis Colts led NBC to a dominant Sunday night win in all key measures - adults, men and women 18-34, 18-49, 25-54 and total viewers. NBC's margin of victory over its closest network competitor Sunday night was 98 percent in adults 18-49 and 50 percent in total viewers. .

* Despite Sunday night's Colts 38-14 blowout over the Giants in "Manning Bowl II," this week's Giants-Colts game surpassed the original "Manning Bowl," which opened the Colts and Giants 2006 season and was the debut game for NBC's "Sunday Night Football," by 2 percent in total viewers and 5 percent in adults 18-49. .

* On Friday, "Dateline NBC" reported its highest Friday 18-49 rating in 14 weeks and its biggest overall viewership for a Friday telecast in 20 weeks. In its two-hour time period, "Dateline" ranked #1 among the major networks in adults 18-49, adults 25-54, total viewers and other key categories.

* On Wednesday, the season finale of "America's Got Talent" delivered the highest 18-49 rating for a "Talent" finale in three years and attracted the show's biggest overall audience ever.

* The "America's Got Talent" finale scored NBC's highest 18-49 rating in the time period since September 26, 2007, excluding Olympics, and attracted NBC's biggest overall audience in the time period, again excluding Olympics, since November 28, 2001.

* For its full two-hour time period on Wednesday, "America's Got Talent" ranked #1 among the major networks in all key ratings categories, despite formidable competition from CBS's combination of the season premiere of "Survivor" and the season finale of "Big Brother" and Fox's two-hour season finale of MasterChef."

* Also on Wednesday, a special preview of the new series "Outlaw" ranked #2 among the major networks in the hour in all key demographics and was #1 in total viewers. Airing opposite the concluding hour of CBS's "Big Brother" season finale, "Outlaw" delivered NBC's biggest overall audience in the time period in a year, excluding Olympics.

* NBC won Wednesday night in adults 18-49, adults 25-54, total viewers and other key measures.

* On Tuesday, the penultimate telecast of this year's "America's Got Talent" delivered what was, prior to the following night's finale, "Talent's" highest 18-49 rating in three years (matched the following night) and its second biggest viewership ever (topped the following night to make the Tuesday audience "Talent's" #3 ever). Versus the comparable year-ago edition, the Tuesday telecast was up 18 percent in adults 18-49 and 5 percent in total viewers.

* Tuesday's "America's Got Talent" was dominant competitively - it was the #1 telecast on television that night in adults 18-49, total viewers and other key categories and ranked #1 in its time period in all key measures

* Also on Tuesday, the second-season debut of "Parenthood" dominated its time period, beating the first-run competition on ABC and CBS combined in every key ratings category.

* "Parenthood" delivered its second-biggest audience to date, second only to its series debut on March 2, 2010, and matched its third-highest rating ever in adults 18-49. Versus its season finale on May 25, the "Parenthood" debut was up 4 percent in 18-49 rating and 19 percent or 1.2 million persons in total viewers.

* Additionally on Tuesday, "Minute To Win It" (1.9/6 in 18-49, 6.6 million viewers overall) matched its highest Tuesday rating of the summer in adults 18-49 and hit a new summer high in total viewers.

* On Monday, a rebroadcast of "America's Got Talent" hit a new summer high in total viewers for a Monday "Talent" encore and scored the show's highest Monday 18-49 rating since August 9.

Ratings reflect "live plus same day" data unless otherwise noted. Season-to-date figures are averages of "live plus seven day" data except for the two most recent weeks, which are "live plus same day."

Additional NBC highlights for the week of September 13-19:

On Monday, Sept. 13 from 8-10 p.m. ET, an encore telecast of "America's Got Talent" (1.3 rating, 3 share in adults 18-49, 5.5 million viewers overall) scored the show's highest Monday 18-49 rating since August 9 and hit a new summer high in total viewers for a Monday encore.

Monday at 10 p.m. ET, "Dateline NBC" (1.3/4 in adults 18-49, 4.5 million viewers overall) ranked #2 among the major networks in the hour in adults 18-49, adults 25-54, total viewers and other key measures.

On Tuesday, Sept. 14 from 8-9 p.m. ET, "Minute To Win It" (1.9/6 in 18-49, 6.6 million viewers overall) matched its highest Tuesday rating of the summer in adults 18-49 and hit a new summer high in total viewers. In the time period, "Minute To Win It" ranked #2 among the major networks in adults 18-49. From its first half-hour to its second, "Minute To Win It" grew by 29 percent in 18-49 rating (to a 2.2 from a 1.7) and by 25 percent or more than 1.4 million persons in total viewers (to 7.3 million from 5.8 million).

Tuesday from 9-10 p.m. ET, the penultimate telecast of this year's "America's Got Talent" (3.9/11 in 18-49, 14.6 million viewers overall) generated what was, prior to Wednesday night's finale, "Talent's" highest 18-49 rating in three years (matched on Wednesday) and its second biggest viewership ever (topped on Wednesday, to make the Tuesday audience "Talent's" #3 ever). The last previous telecast of "Talent" to score a higher 18-49 rating was the show's second season finale on Tuesday, August 21, 2007 (a 4.2 rating). In total viewers, the only edition of "Talent" prior to last Tuesday's to deliver a bigger overall audience was the year-ago season finale on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 (15.8 million).

Versus the comparable year-ago "Talent" telecast on Monday, September 14, 2009, this year's "Talent" was up 18 percent in 18-49 rating (3.9/11 vs. 3.3/9) and 5 percent in total viewers (14.6 million vs. 13.9 million).

Competitively, "America's Got Talent" was dominant - it was the #1 telecast on television Tuesday night in adults 18-49, total viewers and other key categories and ranked #1 in its time period in all key measures. From its first half-hour to its second, "Talent" grew by 17 percent in 18-49 rating (to a 4.2 from a 3.6) and by 11 percent or more than 1.5 million persons (to 15.4 million from 13.8 million).

Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET, the second-season debut of "Parenthood" (2.7/8 in 18-49, 7.6 million viewers overall) dominated the time period, beating the first-run competition on ABC and CBS combined in every key ratings category - adults, men and women 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54, as well as in total viewers. Versus the original competition of CBS's special "Fashion's Night Out 2010" and ABC's "Final Witness," "Parenthood" spawned a 108 percent margin of victory in adults 18-49 (with a 2.7 vs. a 1.3 for the second-place "Final Witness"), while winning the hour by 63 percent or 2.9 million persons in total viewers (7.6 million vs. 4.7 million for "Final Witness").

"Parenthood" delivered its second-biggest audience to date, second only to its series debut on March 2, 2010, and matched its third-highest rating ever in adults 18-49. Versus its season finale on May 25, the "Parenthood" debut was up 4 percent in 18-49 rating (2.7 vs. 2.6) and 19 percent or 1.2 million persons in total viewers (7.6 million vs. 6.4 million).

NBC was #1 for the night in adults 18-49, adults 18-34, adults 25-54, total viewers and other key categories.

On Wednesday, Sept. 15 from 8-10 p.m. ET, the season finale of "America's Got Talent" (3.9/11 in 18-49, 16.4 million viewers overall) delivered the highest 18-49 rating for a "Talent" finale in three years and attracted the show's biggest overall audience ever, counting finales and all other telecasts.

The 3.9 rating in adults 18-49 is up 11 percent versus last year's finale (a 3.5 on Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2009) and the highest for a concluding episode of "Talent" since the second cycle ended with a 4.2/12 on Tuesday, August 21, 2007. The 3.9 rating is also the highest for any Wednesday "Talent" since July 5, 2006 during the show's first cycle.

The 16.4 million viewers for the "Talent" finale is up 4 percent versus the 15.8 million for last season's finale, previously the biggest audience ever for the show.

"America's Got Talent" scored NBC's highest 18-49 rating in this time period since September 26, 2007, excluding Olympics, and attracted NBC's biggest overall audience in the time period, again excluding Olympics, since November 28, 2001.

From its first half-hour to its fourth, "Talent" grew by 62 percent in 18-49 rating (to a 4.7 from a 2.9) and by 44 percent or 5.9 million persons in total viewers (to 19.2 million from 13.3 million).

For its full two-hour time period, "America's Got Talent" ranked #1 among the major networks in all key ratings categories, despite formidable competition from CBS's combination of the season premiere of "Survivor" and the season finale of "Big Brother" and Fox's two-hour season finale of "MasterChef."

Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET, NBC aired a special Wednesday preview of the new series "Outlaw" (2.3/7 in adults 18-49, 10.7 million viewers overall) which ranked #2 among the major networks in the hour in all key demographics and was #1 in total viewers. Airing opposite the concluding hour of CBS's "Big Brother" season finale and ABC's "Castle" encore, "Outlaw" delivered NBC's biggest overall audience in the time period, excluding Olympics, since September 16, 2009. In adults 18-49, it was NBC's top non-sports rating in the slot since May 19.

"Outlaw" was up 21 percent in 18-49 rating versus NBC's non-sports average in this time period during the 2009-10 season (2.4 vs. 1.9). In total viewers, the "Outlaw" preview was up 65 percent or 4.2 million persons (10.7 million vs. 6.5 million).

NBC was #1 Wednesday night in adults 18-49, adults 25-54, total viewers and other key measures.

On Thursday, Sept. 16 from 8-8:30 p.m. ET, a rebroadcast of "The Office" averaged a 1.1/3 in 18-49, 2.8 million viewers overall, matching NBC's highest non-sports 18-49 rating in the slot since May 20 and delivering NBC's biggest overall audience in the half-hour, excluding sports, since that same date.

From 8:30-9 p.m. ET, a second encore of "The Office" (1.2/4 in 18-49, 3.1 million viewers overall) built on its lead-in by 20 percent in 18-49 rating to file NBC's top 18-49 and total-viewer result in this half-hour since May 20, excluding sports.

Thursday from 9-11 p.m. ET, the premiere of "The Apprentice" averaged a 1.5/5 in adults 18-49 and 4.6 million viewers overall. "The Apprentice" ranked #2 among the major networks in the time period in men 18-49 and men 25-54. From its first half-hour to its fourth, "The Apprentice" grew by 23 percent in 18-49 rating (to a 1.6 from a 1.3) and by 14 percent in total viewers (to 5.0 million from 4.4 million).

On Friday, Sept. 17 from 8-10 p.m. ET, "Dateline NBC" (1.4/5 in 18-49, 6.4 million viewers overall) reported its highest Friday 18-49 rating in 14 weeks (since June 11) and its biggest overall viewership for a Friday telecast in 20 weeks (since April 30). Week-to-week, the Friday "Dateline" was up 17 percent in 18-49 rating (1.4 vs. 1.2) and 28 percent or more than 1.4 million persons in total viewers (6.4 million vs. 5.0 million).

In its two-hour time period, "Dateline" ranked #1 among the major networks in adults 18-49, adults 25-54, total viewers and other key categories. From its first half-hour to its fourth, "Dateline" increased its 18-49 rating by 42 percent (to a 1.7 from a 1.2) and its overall viewership by 32 percent or nearly 1.8 million persons (to 7.4 million from 5.6 million)

Friday from 10-11 p.m. ET, an encore telecast of the "Outlaw" pilot averaged a 0.9/3 in adults 18-49 and 3.9 million viewers overall in a time period that included original competition from ABC's "20/20" season premiere and CBS's "Flashpoint" season finale.

On Saturday, Sept. 18 from 8-10 p.m. ET, an encore telecast of "The Apprentice" averaged a 0.5/2 in 18-49 and 1.8 million viewers overall. From its first half-hour to its fourth, "The Apprentice" grew by 50 percent in 18-49 rating (to a 0.6 from a 0.4).

Saturday at 10 p.m. ET, a rebroadcast of "Parenthood" delivered a 0.5/2 in 18-49 and 1.7 million viewers overall.

On Sunday Sept. 19, the "NBC Sunday Night Football" telecast of the New York Giants at the Indianapolis Colts propelled NBC to a convincing Sunday win by all key measures. For its full duration, the Giants-Colts game averaged a 9.2/24 in adults 18-49, 23.1 million viewers overall and a 13.8/23 household rating/share from 8:31-11:12 p.m. ET.

NBC won Sunday night by all key ratings measures - adults, men and women 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54, teens 12-17 plus total viewers. In adults 18-49, NBC's margin of victory over the #2 network was 98 percent in 18-49 (7.9 vs. a 4.0 for CBS, which was boosted by an NFL overrun) and 50 percent, or more than 6.6 million persons in total viewers (20.0 million vs. 13.3 million for CBS).

Despite Sunday night's Colts 38-14 blowout over the Giants in "Manning Bowl II," the viewership for "Sunday Night Football" surpassed the original "Manning Bowl," which opened the Colts and Giants 2006 season and was the debut game for NBC's "Sunday Night Football." Sunday night's Colts rout virtually ties for the third-best audience in "SNF" history.

The game, in which the Colts led 24-0 at halftime, was seen by an average of 23.1 million people, a gain of two percent over "Manning Bowl I" (22.6 million in Week 1, 2006 - Colts won 26-21) and is tied for the third most-watched "SNF" game ever. In 18-49 rating, this week's Giants-Colts game topped the original "Manning Bowl 1" by 5 percent (9.2 vs. an 8.8 rating on September 10, 2006)

Also on Sunday, "Football Night in America 2" from 7:30-7:56 p.m. ET averaged a 2.3/7 in 18-49, 6.3 million viewers overall and a 4.0/7 household rating/share. "Football Night in America 3" from 7:56-8:22 p.m. delivered a 5.1/15 in 18-49, 13.5 million viewers overall and an 8.2/14 in households. From 8:22-8:31 p.m., "NBC Sunday Night Football Pre Kickoff" averaged a 7.1/21 in 18-49, 18.5 million viewers overall and an 11.2/19 in households. Note: "Football Night in America" from 7-7:30 p.m. ET was sustaining programming and does not figure in the nightly or weekly primetime averages.